After beating the Carthaginians in the Second Punic War, the Romans seemed to have a clear path so that they could conquer the rest of the Mediterranean Sea. In fact, with no chance of reversing the defeat suffered, the Carthaginians gave up the war and started to promote the development of their agricultural economy. Gradually, the food produced by the defeated began to compete with the Roman owners of the Iberian Peninsula.
Politically, the Carthaginians were forced to sign a peace treaty full of punishments and advantages for the Roman government. First, Carthage could not declare war on any other civilization if it did not have the proper approval of the Roman Senate. In addition, a considerable part of the Carthaginian fertile land was handed over to the Numidians, one of Carthage's greatest enemies on the African continent.
In the meantime that the Carthaginians were looking to recover their economy, the Romans went in search of new lands along the Mediterranean Sea. Quickly, the regions of Greece, Syria and Dalmatia were taken, ensuring the expansion of domains and the strengthening of the Roman economy. The Carthaginians were able to recover the economic potential of their land and compete with the agricultural goods of the Roman landowners.
The patricians, who then controlled the Senate, began to exert strong pressure for the government to promote a new war against the Carthaginians. However, apart from their private interests, landowners had no plausible motivation for such military spending. Cato, a famous Roman senator of that time, carried out a veritable political “lobby” ending all his speeches calling for the immediate destruction of Carthage.
To resolve the impasse, the Roman leaders devised a strategy that could mask their strictly economic motivations. Without publicly announcing, Rome instigated Massissina, king of Numidia, to carry out a series of attacks and pillages against Carthaginian possessions. Fulfilling the treaty signed with Romano, the Carthaginians made several requests requesting authorization so that he could fight the Numidian troops.
Senators, interested in the destruction of Carthage, did not heed the requests for two years. No longer supporting such negligence, the Carthaginians, in 150 BC. a., attacked the numidas without the Roman approval. From then on, Rome found the necessary excuse to finally annihilate the city of Carthage.
After a terrible seventy-day siege, Roman forces brought about the complete destruction of Carthage and turned all survivors into slaves. According to some surveys, more than 600,000 people were killed in this brutal invasion process. According to a legend, after the destruction, the Roman senators ordered the Carthaginian lands to be salted so that nothing would grow there.
By Rainer Sousa
Graduated in History
Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/guerras/terceira-guerra-punica.htm